We Have A Philosophy

I have spent the last couple of days trying to parse as much info as I possibly could from the MacT press conference and the subsequent follow up done one on one for the Oilers website. There were so many things that were said but almost none of it piqued my interest until MacTavish started talking about the Draft.

Up until that presser we haven’t heard too much from the Oilers by way of admitting there was a problem with what Stu McGregor was doing at the Draft in recent years this was really the first visible crack in the armor. Surely he has been questioned by bloggers and fans in the past couple of years but not so much by team officials, at least not publicly. That’s why I paid attention when Craig MacTavish started talking about the lack of success in later rounds undermining the things the team has tried to do.

WE HAVE A PHILOSOPHY

Now Craig MacTavish did not say that the Oilers currently have a drafting problem. He said that they formerly had a problem and that when he came in he started to make changes. He said, “The minute we took over we focused on improving our Draft record…we are accutely aware of our former inadequacies.” The Silver Fox specifically brought up that only 2 players in the lineup from the game before had come from the 2nd round or beyond. He was referring to Pitlick and Petry. Only 1 of those players is an established NHL player. If we can extend MacGregor 1 more player who I feel is between Petry and Pitlick it would be Marincin. That’s still just 3 players currently in the organization who are capable of playing NHL minutes who came from beyond “No-Brainer” territory.

MacTavish went on a little bit about the different things that they’ve done since he took over. Here’s a bit of what he said.

“We’ve worked hard to improve all our processes, in terms of our drafting. We’re more regionally focussed. Uh, there’s more of an emphasis on getting to know the players, interviewing the players. We’ve integrated a lot of, uh, uh, analytics into our decision making. We’ve integrated technology into our video scouting. We’ve got more management now in the field communicating with our scouts and watching games. We’ve got a Draft philosophy…since I took over. We’ve got a Draft philosophy in an effort to improve our Draft record.” (Emphasis mine)

IMPLICATIONS

The Oilers officially began this version of the Rebuild halfway through the 2009-2010 season. The franchise recognized that it lacked truly high end players and resolved itself to acquire them through the Draft. The NHL Entry Draft was the focus of every decision the Oilers and their management made. They iced bad teams they knew couldn’t compete and did next to nothing to make themselves better. They played young men without making them earn their minutes or pay much in the way of dues.

The Oilers were focussed on Rebuilding through the Draft. It started and ended with their choices every June. Craig MacTavish’s comments are damning to the previous Management regime and that includes Kevin Lowe who oversaw everything as the President of Hockey Operations. How is it possible that the Oilers made the Draft the focal point of their plan to become a Stanley Cup contender but lacked a Draft Philosophy?

It wasn’t until the 2013 Draft that MacT’s changes could have made any difference. That means that Tambellini, under Lowe’s watch, put little to no extra effort into improving the one thing that controlled Edmonton’s fate more than anything else. Katz, Lowe, and Tambellini had the money, the support of the fans, and the mandate to do this one thing better than they had ever done it before and MacTavish just went through a laundry list of what I think are basic improvements that didn’t happen under their direction.

There aren’t many things that were said at that Press Conference that I raised my eyebrow at, but those comments definitely gave me some things to think about.

THE FALL GUY

Steve Tambellini is gone, and rightfully so, but the man who watched over everything he did and ran Hockey Operations is still here. The man who was Edmonton’s head scout, who ran the Draft, is still here. The owner who passionately appealed to the fans to give him time and let him do this Rebuild the right way is still here (in spirit anyway). I have trouble believing that everything is going to be fine. I have trouble believing that those Draft inadequacies are all behind them. Don’t you?

The GM made quite the scene being sure he separated himself from the man who came before him. He did not want current management to be lumped in with the men who submarined the franchise and sent them to an infinibuild. From where I sit, I have trouble seeing the meaningful change.

However, I would also point out that Marincin hardly counts as a non-1st-round success, because that 46th overall pick was acquired by trading away Riley Nash, who was an Oilers 1st rounder from 2 years prior.

The Oilers required two kicks at the draft can, including one in the first round, before they landed Marincin, and they had to give up a useful NHL player in order to do so.

The problem is what is going on in the Locker Room and the mentality of wrongful entitlement.

Could we have a better coach for the job? Sure. Maybe Eakins wasn’t the right man for the job but I don’t think he is hurting anything. He has hockey sense and knows what works. Unfortuantely, what he learned as a veteran, might not work on these Oilers because they don’t see the big picture. If they bought into it as a collective group and cared about each other, It would work.

Calgary has Bob Hartley, a proven coach in the NHL. The Flames are also a group that care for each other and who don’t want to let each other down. Both of those factors equal success. It is easier to coach a team that cares.

We had a hard working team with a great leader in 1997. Not much talent ouside of Weight and Smyth, But they cared for each other. Ron Lowe fed off of that and they upset Dallas..

I have had it with “Lowe must Go”. If you had to choose a person to be in charge of the franchise, wouldn’t you want a guy who personally loves the Oilers?

Kevin Lowe is not the problem. He Won 6 rings, he played most of his career in Edmonton, he decided to retire here and loves the city. When he was a player, he played his heart out. When he was a coach, he had a winning record and got us to the playoffs. When he was the GM he made the moves he needed to, with what he had and we got to the finals. Now that we haven’t made it to the playoffs and he should go? He doesn’t have anything to do with the players.

You know who does, that nobody blames? The Enitled fans.

Do you think booing your team helps the mentality in the locker room?

Do you think that if I played for the Oilers and saw a bill board that said “Lowe must Go”, that it would inspire me to play here? That Arm Chair team owner should have gave that money to charity instead of trying to bully Katz and demotivate our team.

The fans feel entitled which is fine, but why rub your negative thoughts on the team and the city.

We are not stupid. We see the team is in a major slump.

Craig Button said that MacT’s press conference was a joke. Like he would know better.
He fired Darryl Sutter in Calgary and then was replaced by him, which led them to the finals.

Fans can have an opinion, but that doesn’t mean you are right. If you knew what was best for the team, why are you not working for a hockey organization? The Islanders were a horrible team a lot longer than the Oilers were. Fans wanted Garth Snow fired after he made brutal trades and bad signings. Now the Islanders are winning games and he is still the GM.

How about fans try and help motivate their team instead of whining and yelling at them like spoiled kids. If you can’t afford to goto games than don’t. If you can and don’t want to go, donate your tickets to kids, who remember why going to the game is fun and will cheer our team no matter how bad they are.

Those of you who say that Lowe, Katz, MacTavish and Eakins should’t run our team, get over it.

Eakins was successful as a coach in the AHL. Lowe has more than proven himself and is constantly asked for his input on our national teams from people like Steve Yzerman(who I am sure knows what he is doing). Katz could afford the Oilers for a reason. He isn’t stupid. MacTavish is a smart guy and has proven that as a coach and player.

Point the fingers at yourselves as bad fans for causing so much grief for the people who are trying to do their job both on and off the ice.

And a major suck up like you helps the Oiler’s how???? It’s called enabling!!!!! All of the management from top to bottom including the players have to be held a accountable for their screw ups. With no ownership comes no change!!!!

Do you know what assuming does? It makes an ass out of u and me. You are assuming that I have booed and put down the oilers in anyway shape or form. I’m a personal friend to one of the oiler players. I’m always at the top of the line cheering them on, but I won’t overlook crap when I see and hear it. I’m talking about accountability. It’s a normal consequence for your mistakes, poor choices and decisions in life. It’s about common sense. It’s a method by which one learns from mistakes and thereby improving their life, job etc.
Why should the Oiler’s from top down be an exception to this? I never said I was a pro….. just another assumption on your behalf. An enabler like you makes you the sheep. You can kiss their ass and hold their hand because it’s really all about you being a wanna be.
Obviously, my response to you hit a nerve. You certainly spew, but you can’t take it. Are you sure you are not part of the Oiler’s Organization?

I get the feeling that if Katz owned a ship-building company, and Lowe & company were the men in charge of building and then putting that fine liner to sea, that you would blame the water if it sunk after casting off.

It’s funny there is no accountability from MacT himself. That’s what I find scariest. He’s said something about the lack of players that he had he added 14 or 15 players. So it’s not MacT’s fault it’s still Tambelini’s but 75% of this roster is MacT’s. The other 5 or 6 players must really be horrible. Who are they?

RNH, Hall, Eberle, Petry, Klefbom & Arcobello.

Note; Schultz & Yakupov were signed/drafted under Tambellini but MacT was with the management team when they signed Schultz & Yakupov.

I know we dont want to think it, but maybe the problem IS our core players. Not the players in and of themselves (though they all make some pretty bone-headed decisions sometimes). Rather, this mix of players just is not going to work.

Hasn’t been working. Isn’t working. And will not begin to work. These players could all be good to great on a different team, surrounded by a different mix of players. But putting them altogether here is a failed experiment. Time to cut the strings and try something new.

Imagine what we could get back if we put RNH, Hall, Eberle, Perron, Petry, etc on the block. Yes, that would HURT to watch them all go, but I believe we could bring back equally good pieces, who might work better together (and frankly couldn’t work any worse together)

Somebody should tell these morons that there is more to the draft than just the 1st round.

How can you go to your fans and sell the idea of a rebuild and building to the draft when it is completely obvious that outside of the first round that they had absolutely no strategy? You cannot blame all of this on Tambelinni. Lowe certainly has to shoulder that blame as well and of course the scouts do too. Their record speaks for itself.

And yet somehow they are all here still? Why? Because we are the Oilers.

Lowetide breaks this down quite nicely and demonstrates that the last few years have actually been good drafts for the Oil. But he admits it is hard to tell as it requires a 5 year window to evaluate each draft. The Oil up to about 2010 did not draft well. The last 4 have been solid with a lot of players trending. Pitlick, Marincin and Pelss (RIP) from 2010, Klefbom Reider from 2011 (with Gernat and Ewanyk trending), Moroz and Kharia from 2012, Yak2 and Chase (7th Round!!) from 2013. There are other potentials in there as well. Prior to that, yuk.

Pitlick’s development was handled poorly, but Moroz in particular stayed in Jr for a long time. He was taken way before he was slated to go. That’s a Drafting problem. Now he’s in and out of the OKC lineup but that’s a new development with him. He was a suspect before his pro career started.

I’m referring to him coming out of college after 1 year. He then went to the WHL for 1 year (where he didn’t exactly dominate). Then he went to the AHL before his Jr eligibility was done. They fast-tracked him through a bunch of leagues when he probably could have used more stability.

I really didn’t like the transition from the WHL to the AHL after just a single year. I didn’t think he had done anything to warrant that.

Sure, but not every player can be put into the same template.
He hasn’t floundered in the AHL or in his short stints in the NHL so far. So I’m not sure you can say it was handled poorly. He’s proven himself for the most part in opportunities he’s been given. Sometimes (rarely) the Oilers have got it right and I think so far this kid is an example of that.

He also had 22 points in 39 games last year. doubled his point production in an injury season. Seems like hes trending up.
Point production in the AHL is only a snapshot of a player. Anton Lander is a very good point producing AHL player and hes not even close in the NHL. Alexandre Giroux was a point per game player in the AHL but couldn’t buy a point in the NHL.
Pitlick was drafted for what he brings and he has brought it at every level he has played at. Hes a type of complementary player that Edmonton needs and he is doing just that.

^maybe, but it couldn’t have been any worse than the Jets taking a slug like Lukas Sutter in the 2nd round at #39 in 2012 and having his development regress to the point where the Jets chose not to sign him and he was taken again in 2014 in the 7th round by the Isles.

we at least still have a *chance* to get something in the future with Moroz, while the Jets completely wasted their #39 pick when there was still quality on the board.

^no, i’m saying it’s not just the Oilers making ‘out there’ picks in the 2nd round. a number of teams have done it, but Oiler fans think that only the Oilers do this. and way to give up on a prospect instantly if he doesn’t show you something right away after turning pro. typical Oiler fan….show me something now or you’re a bust! i have even heard this BS about Leon and how we ‘should’ have taken Bennett instead!

There were MANY teams that made a worse pick than Moroz. Many who didn’t even get signed. I thought Moroz was a poor pick at the time but he has showed better, especially his follow up WHL season. Who was the better picks? Maybe Sissons or Tierney…not a whole lot there, that was a weak ass draft.

Stolarz is a legit goalie prospect for the Flyers, Aberg is second on the Admirals in scoring, Severson is a regular on the NJ blueline this season. Frederik Andersen was also selected in this draft as well. Though I agree with you, it was a brutal draft..

Oh, just wait till after this draft! All those 2nd to 7th round picks are going to be up arrows. Then of course comes the regular season and the 2011 draft class is either stagnant or trending south. But just wait for the 2016 draft – the shiny, bright potential from that group!

They have not improved, and drafting locally appears to mean drafting lazily to me.

The Moroz pick is BRUTAL and not just because he is currently struggling in OKC. I watch lots of Oil Kings games and it should not a be a secret this guys ceiling is an outside chance at being a 3rd line player in the NHL. He only started producing in Junior in his last year playing with Lazar.

Moroz was not getting picked up in the first round by any other team, total waste of a pick. They probably could have got him with their 2nd round pick (and I would have rolled my eyes at that pick as well).

Martin Gernat? Never going to make the big show. Musil? All fails. Drafting regionally should extend beyond the Oil Kimgs franchise. Do any other teams draft ‘regionally’? Another example of the Oilers outsmarting everyone doing something original.

^drafting ‘regionally’ likely means that Stu and his staff are too lazy to go out and scout the rest of the world in person when video will do….and last years’ draft kind of proves that. i thought after the Draisaitl and Lagesson picks the rest were junk picks! that’s why i would like to see Stu and his staff gone before they have a chance to ruin yet another draft with out there picks and boom or bust picks after the 1st round ! time for a fresh approach!

You make several very good points. However, one question I have relates to the Oilers lack of a top grade goal tender for what seems to be forever.

When Furcale was drafted by the Canadiens, the Oilers actually had a chance to move up and take him but didn’t. Since every person that follows hockey realizes just how important the goalie is to on ice success, how is it that MacT and the brain trust did not identify this glaring need?

If you want to have success at the draft, you sometimes have to be proactive to get the ‘guy’ you want/need. Rather than targeted drafting the Oilers appear to have the approach that volume is the key. This hasn’t worked well to date. I wonder if MacT will begin to target specific players in the 2015 draft, other than first rounders like McDavid and Eichel.

Forget goaltending… It’s been brutal,and of that there is no argument. But, what’s the point in acquiring legit top performing net minders if you don’t have the horses up front. Better to wait till there’s semblance of a competitive team if you ask me.
So the real question is what have they done for Defensemen other than D.Nurse? SWEET FA!!!

You’d think Kevin would have recognized there was going to be a problem once Pronger departed. Didn’t the man in the moulded microns play on the Blue Line after all? What an idiot…

It is difficult developing AHL players into NHL players when main club is subpar to begin with . The NHL club does little to enhance a positive NHL experience for these up and comers , making that transition that much harder . Far easier to develop properly on a more established team and winning environment . Our leadership still in flux or disaray , making it more difficult for AHL’ers coming up to excel and fit in . Players have to help them more and show better leadership .

Oilers discovered a new gear in work ethic last night that should stand them in good stead the rest of the season .

A new gear in work ethic? Really? The Sharks showed no interest in competing last night and the oil won because they matched the Sharks intensity level. If the boys play the same way in SJ they will be shredded, if they play the same way in Anaheim they will be vivisectioned. Unless your comment was undetected sarcasm, in which case I concur.

San Jose showed the weakness they show in most playoffs , not enough intensity for portions of the game . They are losing more often this year , and i’ll bet changes are forthcoming for them as a result . We did not match their intensity , we upped it and won as a result . Have no idea what game and fantasy you were watching ? Boys work ethic was impeccable last night , and maybe you should watch the game again and learn to enjoy it for the game it was and not the clouded vision you thought it was .

One of the biggest problems with draft/development was the lack of a farm team. Now that we have a farm team, that’s playing decent hockey, it appears that we actually have some potential NHLers bubbling under the surface. But I don’t think we have many impact NHlers down on the farm and that is a problem. When you look at guys like Yakimov, Moroz, Khaira, Gernat, Simpson, I’m thinking 3rd/4th liners or 5th/6th Dmen. Which is better than what we’ve been producing but probably isn’t the push we are going to need to take the step to the next level.

The lack of accountability from Mactavish during that press conference was astounding. At one point he mentioned how they had no 2nd and 3rd round pick last draft and how they don’t want to do that again this year. Who traded those picks? MacT. I have a hard time believing that anything has changed except there are less and less scapegoats to blame things on.

It doesn’t have to be complicated. Choose the BPA. Choose the player who is most likely to be a successful NHL player. Not the one who plays in Edmonton (or somewhere else in Western Canada). Not the one whose father played in the NHL. Choose players who can SKATE. If that player fills a role that is already filled on the team, trade someone to fill a hole somewhere else.

The draft of Alex Plante in the first round was one of the stupidest picks in Oilers history. Lowe was trying to deke everyone out, he deked himself out. THAT’S THE WAY OILERS MANAGEMENT THINKS. THEY ARE SO STUPID THEY THINK THEY ARE SMART.

Consider the year they drafted Paajarvi in the first round and Lander in the second. The most goals Paajarvi had scored in a season since he was 14 years old was TWELVE, with Lander it was ELEVEN. But they both looked good during 6 games played for Sweden in the WJHC. Played in Edmonton of course. Any player can look good or bad in a small sample. SMART teams do not make such stupid decisions.

Only one solution: clear out Lowe, MacTavish, Macgregor, and the rest of the scouting staff. Mr. Nicholoson must know many smart people in the hockey world. Literally, it could not get worse.

Not sure why Paajarvi was so highly sought after. The Oilers thought they drafted an offensive player and expected more offense out of the guy, but he never showed offensive flare before the draft. So what were they basing his offense on?

I’m not giving up on Moroz because he isn’t producing. I watched him for three seasons as an Oil King, he has very very little offensive upside. Drafting him at 32 when he was not on the radar of other teams is a terrible pick.

I hope he reaches his potential and makes the Oil someday, I’ve met him and he is a great kid. But he will likely end up being another example of why the Oilers do not find success outside of the first round.

And it pisses me off at people saying “Typicla Oilers fan gives up on a draft pick so early”. Give me a break, the fans giving up on someone has nothing to do whether or not they make it. Want me to give the Oilers the benefit of the doubt, then they should start proving me wrong. Give me some good examples of players drafted outside of the first round that are going to help our team.

Because the Oilers projecting NHL players out of career minor leaguers is becoming pretty commonplace around here. Forgive me if I’m just as skeptical about Moroz, Gernat, Yakimov, Khaira and Pitlick as I was for Hartikainen, Lander, Chorney, Petrell, O’Marra.

I swear if a GM just took a look at pronman’s list during the draft and drafted the best player available off of that list every time, they’d have success. Edmonton seems to take too many gambles with the hope of someone panning out. This was extremely evident with this past years’ draft, ie, bouchard, coughlin. Even with the selection of draisaitl i think they left the best player available behind. could have had bennett, and IMO he will turn out to be the best player out of the 2014 draft. Still like draisaitl dont get me wrong, but i doubt he’ll be as good as bennett.

Especially when you look at who we could have selected instead of david musil…there are 17 NHL players there give or take. or people who have played NHL games there in the 2nd round that went after him. that hurts. especially the jon gibson one. hindsights 20/20 though

The only “meaningful change” around these parts is what is found between Katz’ couch cushions.

I think every era had a “draft philosophy” even if that philosophy was “disorganized” or “ad hoc”.

I note that MacT talked about better regional representation (i.e. the WHL) and it’s obvious that the Oil Kings are their CHL scouts. I just hope that they do not pass on other quality talent just because they want more players with a western Canadian connection.

I also note that we are using the LA’s and Chicago’s and Vancouver’s of the NHL as our measuring stick and the only way that we can get bigger is to draft and develop these players or else trade some of the skilled minor league munchkins for quality big bodied players. The Reider trade was an example of the latter and it boomeranged on the Oilers.

I also note that when we acquire players from other organizations at the minor league level, they rarely pan out for us. Nilsson, Tuebert, O’Marra and others all came to us via trade with a minor league pedigree but did nothing as professionals.

At the end of the day, my only conclusion is that we do not know how to identify quality prospects outside of the first round and we dedicate too much time and resources to acquiring and developing the wrong prospects and we do not know how to trade the prospects we do have for players that can help us.

@Harlie….but they also passed on Memorial Cup champion goalie Tristan Jarry, who was outstanding last year and is holding it together this year with a noticably weaker team and also d-man Dyson Mayo, and his 8 goals and 23 points in 31 games, with a +10.

I still say it all all goes back to the people they hire. They have no one who has come from a great NHL organization; no one has worked under Ken Holland, or Peter Chiarelli, Dean Lombardi. everyone is either a former Oiler, or an Oiler employee that moved up. There is no knowledge of how it’s done elsewhere. In a meeting, no one can say: “when I was in Detroit, this is what we did”.

Lowe should have been gone a while ago. Why was Howson hired back in the first place? What was that word again, accountability? Where is that again? No discernible effort to pick up a couple of centers or better defense is on MacTavish. Strange defensive pairings/call-ups/demotions is on Eakins/Mactavish. Players playing poorly/atrociously and continuing to get top ice is on Eakins and his staff. Nobody, well maybe NOW they will be with Schultz sitting quite a bit in the third, has been held accountable. How can I get hired by this group?